


i hate accidents except when we went from friends to this

by bothsexuals



Category: Community (TV)
Genre: Fluff, Getting Together, M/M, Secret Relationship, bi jeff rights!!!, found family teas, i guess it's set during s3
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-14
Updated: 2020-05-14
Packaged: 2021-03-02 17:34:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,081
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24180658
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bothsexuals/pseuds/bothsexuals
Summary: “Well, uh-” Troy scrambled to find the right words to express what he felt for the man sitting beside him, but nothing felt good enough.“You make me feel warm,” he settled for, “safe. I want to spend every moment of the day with you, even if it means we won’t always have things to talk about. I’d still like sitting in silence with you more than I like spending time with almost anybody else.”or: Troy and Abed figure some things out, and get the chance to explore a new relationship trope.
Relationships: Abed Nadir & Jeff Winger, Troy Barnes & Annie Edison & Abed Nadir, Troy Barnes & Jeff Winger, Troy Barnes/Abed Nadir, hints of anniebritta
Comments: 42
Kudos: 477





	i hate accidents except when we went from friends to this

**Author's Note:**

> The rumors are true, I have written a full-fledged trobed story, rather than a short snippet of yearning. Not that I will stop doing that, mind you. Anyways, the working title for this was "The one where everybody finds out", like the iconic Friends episode. Enjoy. 
> 
> Title is obviously from Taylor Swift's "Paper Rings", THE best friends to lovers song.

Jeff tore his eyes away from his biology textbook, an exasperated look on his face. Troy had been pacing, walking the length of the study room table back and forth for what felt like an eternity, and it was really messing with his already fragile concentration. 

“Troy.” He raised his voice when the younger man gave no sign of having heard him. “Troy!” 

Troy stopped in his tracks and turned towards Jeff. 

“What the hell is wrong with you?” Jeff abruptly asked, but regretted his snappiness as soon as he saw the expression on Troy’s face. 

His brows were furrowed and his eyes looked sad, as if he was just barely holding back tears.

“What’s going on?” Jeff reiterated, his voice a lot gentler.

Troy fidgeted with his hands, avoiding Jeff’s gaze.

“I can’t tell you,” he mumbled. 

“Can you tell someone else?” Jeff closed his textbook and stood up, walking towards Troy as concern took over him. “Can you tell Abed?”

Troy’s eyes widened, and he shook his head vigorously. 

“Oh, no. No, he’s the _last_ person I can tell.” 

Jeff raised his eyebrows, baffled. That never happened; those two told each other everything. It was weirdly endearing.

“What’s so bad you can’t tell Abed?” He asked, the hint of amusement in his voice overshadowed by the much more copious amount of worry. 

Troy looked up and studied Jeff’s eyes for a minute as the man confusedly stared back, wondering what the hell he had done to get mixed up with this damn study group, and to care about them so much. 

“Okay,” Troy finally conceded, “I’ll tell you. But you have to promise you won’t tell _anyone_.” He saw Jeff start to scoff and pointed a finger at him. “I’m serious, Jeff.”

“Alright, alright.” Jeff sat down in what was usually Abed’s chair. “What's up?” 

Troy sat in his usual place and avoided Jeff’s gaze once again, instead looking at his hands, which were folded in his lap. 

“I think I might be gay,” he muttered so quietly he wasn’t sure Jeff had even heard him. 

Jeff was silent for a couple of seconds, and Troy’s heartbeat sped up in fear. 

“Cool.” Jeff finally said. 

Troy looked at him, puzzled by his friend’s calm reaction. 

“Cool?” 

“Yeah,” he shrugged, “cool.” 

“Okay… That’s not all.” 

Troy still sounded unsure, as if he wasn’t fully convinced of his acceptance, so Jeff put on his gruff ‘get me out of here’ voice.

“Listen, can we hurry this along? I got a date to get to.” 

Troy frowned, confused by his friend’s sudden bluntness, and was about to say something but Jeff continued, umperterred. 

“His name’s Daniel and he’s _really_ hot, so I’d rather not keep him waiting.”

Troy’s mouth fell open in surprise as his features relaxed. 

“Oh.” He smiled as his chest filled with relief and a feeling he didn’t understand yet, perhaps the joy of fitting in. “Cool.” 

Jeff returned Troy's smile and put a hand on his shoulder. 

“You wanna tell me the whole thing, Troy?” 

He nodded. 

“Alright.” Jeff sat back, and patiently waited for Troy to find his words. 

Troy took a deep breath once he felt ready, and spoke in a low, but steady voice. 

“I think I’m in love with Abed.” 

“You think?” Jeff questioned.

“I know,” Troy admitted. 

“Why don’t you tell him?” Jeff asked, keeping his voice low to match Troy’s tone. 

“He’s my best friend, man,” Troy explained with a sigh, “I can’t risk freaking him out and losing him.”

“You won’t lose him,” Jeff said earnestly.

Troy shook his head, fear seeping through his skin. 

“I can’t risk it.” He looked at Jeff as he felt his friend’s hand come back to his shoulder, only partly ashamed of the tears in his eyes. “I can’t.”

“Listen,” Jeff started in his suave, paternal tone, “I know it might sound odd coming from someone as disillusioned by love as I am, but if you really love him, you have to tell him. He might feel the same, but you won’t know if you keep it all inside, Winger style. You shouldn’t miss out on being happy just because you’re scared.”

Troy nodded slowly, letting his friend’s words sink in. Maybe he was right, maybe Abed felt the same. Or maybe he didn’t, but it would still feel freeing to tell him, and Abed wasn’t the person to hate him for something like this, or so he hoped. 

“You’re not gonna tell anyone, right?” He nervously asked.

“It’s not my place to,” Jeff replied easily, and stood up to make his way back to his usual place.

He gathered his books, then glanced at Troy before leaving.

“You’re okay, right?” 

Troy nodded, and Jeff turned to leave.

“Oh, Jeff.” He turned back. “Have fun on your date.” 

Jeff thanked him with a grin, and left the room.

  


***

  


Troy thought over his conversation with Jeff as he walked to the apartment.

So Jeff was bisexual, or maybe pansexual. He would have to ask. Either way, it felt good to know he wasn’t the only one in the group. And Jeff had always been the cool one, so the fact that he also liked men made it cool by default. Plus, if Troy came out and the entire study group turned against him, maybe Jeff would start a new, more LGBT friendly one with him. He just hoped Abed would agree to be in it. 

He opened the door to the apartment, alerting whoever was inside to his arrival with a loud greeting. 

“Hi, Troy!” He heard Abed call from the living room, and his heart clenched as he pictured him sitting there, probably fighting the cold by wearing one of those oversized sweaters of Annie’s they had basically started sharing since they became roommates. 

“Welcome home, Troy,” came Annie’s voice a few seconds later, from the same direction. 

He made a quick trip to the bathroom, then joined his roommates in the living room where they were watching _Cougar Town_ , wearing their comfy sweaters just as he had predicted. 

“Oh, do you want your chair?” Annie asked, sprawled in what was usually his armchair. 

It was kinda weird that they only had two chairs between the three of them, Troy thought, but Annie never seemed to have a problem with sitting on Abed’s armrest, so they never discussed it. 

“No,” he replied, “that’s okay.” 

She smiled gratefully and cuddled under her pink blanket; Troy stood awkwardly beside them for a second, then decided to try something. He tentatively sat down on the armrest of Abed's chair in what was usually Annie’s position, his thigh brushing against Abed’s arm as he did. 

He swallowed nervously, staring straight at the TV as he felt his best friend’s eyes on him, but didn’t dare look, afraid of what he might find there. He cautiously turned after a couple of scenes had come and gone on the show without his friend’s gaze leaving him, and was relieved when Abed offered him a small, sweet smile. 

“It’s the wedding episode,” he explained, then finally turned back to the TV.

“Cool,” Troy replied, “I like that one.” 

The three of them sat that way, watching episode after episode, until a few hours had passed and Abed’s head had wound up resting against Troy’s arm. As the credits rolled, Annie got up, neatly folding her blanket and draping it over the back of the chair. 

“I gotta meet up with Britta,” she said, “can we continue tonight? I’ll be back for dinner.” 

“Cool,” Abed said, and switched to an episode of _Inspector Spacetime_ he and Troy knew by heart, “have fun.” 

Annie fixed her hair in the bathroom mirror, then walked over to the chair Abed and Troy were sharing, and gave them both a kiss on the cheek before leaving. 

Once she was gone, Troy became acutely aware of the fact that his chair was now free, and he should probably move to that one, rather than continue to press himself against Abed. He reluctantly sat up to do just that, but Abed swiftly grabbed his arm to stop him.

“Don’t leave,” he said, looking at Troy with inscrutable, dark eyes. 

Troy sat back with a smile, and when Abed’s hand travelled down his arm to find his own, he gladly took it. 

They spent the next hour or so in that position, until Abed proposed that they try to make Annie some dinner, since she always did it for them, and they started researching a pasta recipe they were likely not to mess up. 

It was nice, being with Abed that way, moving together in the small kitchen, handing each other ingredients and dorkily dancing along to their music. It was a domesticity he had never known, and it made him feel warm inside and calm, at least until Abed tasted the sauce and a drop fell on his lip, making Troy hurt with the effort it took not to step closer and kiss it off. 

They set the table nicely, Troy even picked some flowers from the plants Annie had put on their windowsill and put them in an _Inspector Spacetime_ mug to use as a centerpiece. When the lock clicked, signaling Annie’s arrival, Abed pressed play on one of her favorite albums, and she entered the apartment just as music started to fill it. 

She gasped, one hand coming to her heart.

“You guys, you did all this?” 

“Yeah,” Abed replied, “we wanted to do something nice for you, since you’re always doing nice things for us.”

“We’ll even clean everything up!” Troy added with an excited smile.

“Aww, you guys!” Annie wound her arms around the both of them. “You’re the best roomies ever!” 

They ate dinner (Annie thought their pasta was delicious, despite it being a tad too salty) as they discussed _Cougar Town_ , their next biology project, and continued their ranking of the Dean’s best outfits. Once they had finished, Annie insisted on helping them clean up, so they got everything done pretty quickly and took a tub of ice-cream out of the freezer to split evenly between the three of them. 

“You can sit on my chair,” Troy told Annie as they walked to the TV, bowls in hand, “if you want.”

“Alright,” she agreed with a slick smile, and did just that. 

Abed beamed at him as he sat on the armrest again, and once they had finished their ice-cream and discarded their bowls, he found Troy’s hand with his own and intertwined their fingers again. Troy’s heart skipped a beat, but he shifted just slightly closer to his best friend, and the way Abed smiled when he did gave him hope. 

He found himself unable to focus on the show as Jeff’s words from earlier echoed in his mind, making him feel unusually brave. 

He wanted to tell Abed. Perhaps there was a chance he felt the same, and perhaps, even if he didn’t, he cared about Troy enough not to write him off as a friend. 

And he deserved to know how loved he was, no one else deserved it more. Even if it ended up hurting Troy, Abed deserved to know how much light and warmth he had brought to his life by being the gorgeous, nerdy ray of sunshine he was. 

“I’m going to bed,” Annie announced, shaking Troy out of his thoughts, and punctuated it with an extremely well-timed yawn. 

“I’m tired too,” Abed said as he turned off the TV and looked at Troy, “and we have class early tomorrow. We should go to sleep, too.” 

Troy nodded, and all three of them stood up to get ready for bed, Annie being the first to use the bathroom while Abed and Troy washed their used bowls. 

“Goodnight, Annie,” Abed called after her as she entered her room.

Troy did the same and she blew them a kiss, then closed the door behind her with another yawn. It was their turn to use the bathroom, so they went and brushed their teeth side by side as usual, then changed into their pajamas inside their beloved blanket fort. 

Troy sat on the bottom bunk and watched Abed finish getting ready- not creepily, he clarified in his head, there were just limited places to look inside the fort. His eyes travelled over the curve of Abed’s back as he took off his shirt, and he couldn’t stop himself from wondering how it would feel to trace his fingers over his smooth skin, to press his lips against it, to kiss every inch of the body of the man who occupied his every thought. 

“Are you alright?” 

Troy jumped slightly at Abed’s voice, and his cheeks flushed as their eyes met, as if he had been caught doing something he shouldn’t. Maybe he had. 

“Yeah,” he said, but could see in Abed’s face that he wasn’t convinced. 

“Why are you lying?” Abed asked. 

Troy wondered if anyone else would have detected the trace of hurt in his voice. 

_You won’t know if you keep it all inside._

He sighed. Maybe he should just tell him; maybe this would be the best way to tell him, simply and plainly, without making a big fuss. Just the two of them, in their home. It felt right. 

“I gotta tell you something,” he said, trying to hide his nervousness. 

Abed nodded and sat down next to him, and Troy forced himself to look at him as he spoke.

“I’ve been… thinking.... and I think I- no, I _know_ \- I have feelings for you.” 

He breathed the words more than he said them, and wondered whether Abed had even heard them, whether they had come out at all. Abed’s impassible expression seemed to suggest otherwise.

“Did you-” he started, but Abed had started talking at the same moment, so he let him. 

“What kind of feelings?” he asked. 

“Well, uh-” Troy scrambled to find the right words to express what he felt for the man sitting beside him, but nothing felt good enough.

“You make me feel warm,” he settled for, “safe. I want to spend every moment of the day with you, even if it means we won’t always have things to talk about. I’d still like sitting in silence with you more than I like spending time with almost anybody else.”

He looked at Abed, trying to gauge his reaction, and felt encouraged when he saw a small smile forming on his lips. 

“And I also… I want to be close to you. I want to hug you, and hold your hand, and _kiss you_. I want to kiss you all the damn time, Abed.” 

He stopped talking and looked down at his hands, worried that he had crossed a line he couldn’t return from, worried he had ruined the most important relationship in his life. 

Abed was silent for a few seconds, which did nothing for Troy’s nerves, but he didn’t push him to talk, instead giving him the time he needed to make sense of all the information Troy had just dumped on him. Then, his hand covered Troy’s own, spreading warmth and hope through his body. He looked up, finding Abed’s eyes easily. 

“Do it,” his friend said with a small smile. 

“You mean…” Troy breathlessly asked, already inching closer.

“I feel the same.” Abed removed his hand from Troy’s in favour of bringing it to cup his cheek. “And I want you to kiss me.” 

Troy closed the last remnant of distance between them, bringing their lips together in the softest kiss he had ever given. It only lasted a moment, both of them pulling away to see the other’s reaction. Troy couldn’t help but laugh as they stared nervously at each other, both waiting for the other to make the next move. 

“Cool,” Abed mumbled, “cool, cool, cool, cool. Can we do that again?” 

“ _Please_ ,” Troy unashamedly whined. 

Abed laughed as he hooked his hand behind Troy’s neck to pull him back in and kissed him, longer this time, deeper. They continued to do just that for what felt like an eternity and no time at all, eventually finding themselves laying down, Troy half on top of Abed; his hands had snaked their way underneath Abed’s shirt, and were roaming over the smooth skin he had only been able to admire from afar before. It was even softer than he had imagined, and the way Abed had shuddered when his fingers had first grazed against it would forever be etched into Troy’s brain. 

Abed tried to stifle a yawn when they pulled away from yet another kiss (Troy had stopped counting dozens ago). 

“How long have we been doing this?” 

“Not long enough,” Troy replied smoothly, pressing another quick peck to Abed’s tired lips, “but we can continue tomorrow. Let’s go to sleep.”

He made to get up and move to the top bunk, but Abed limply grabbed his wrist. 

“Stay,” he pleaded, and Troy wouldn’t have said no even if he could have. 

  


***

  


The next morning, Troy woke up with Abed’s arms around him and their legs tangled together, and he had to pinch himself to make sure he wasn’t dreaming. 

He wasn’t. _Holy crap._

“Guys,” Annie, their personal, human-sized alarm, called from outside their fort, “wake up!” 

Abed stirred adorably in his arms, only half-awake, and Troy smiled fondly as he softly tapped his shoulder. 

“Abed,” he whispered, “wake up.” 

Abed grumbled something sleepily, refusing to open his eyes, and Troy decided to try something, just to see if it would work. 

“Come on, babe.” 

Abed’s eyes flew open and he jumped to a sitting position. 

“What did you say?” 

Troy smirked mischievously.

“I said ‘wake up’.”

Abed waggled his finger dismissively.

“Not that, the other thing.” 

“Oh,” Troy falsely realized, “babe?” 

“Yes,” Abed answered, pointing his finger, “that’s it.” 

Troy grinned and almost said it again, but it was swallowed in a kiss. He let himself get lost in the slow, peaceful rhythm of lazy morning kisses, each one drawing another like the sweetest cherries Troy had ever tasted. 

“Guys?” Annie called them again after a while, a tinge of apprehension in her voice. 

“Coming!” Troy yelled, and kissed Abed one last time, and then another last time, and then… 

“Okay, okay,” he said finally, putting a hand over his mouth, “we have to stop. Let’s go have breakfast.” 

“Breakfast,” Abed repeated, his brain clearly not anywhere near breakfast, “cool, cool, cool.” 

They stood up and headed to the kitchen, keeping a healthy distance between them as they greeted Annie. She handed them two bowls of cereal and hissed at them to hurry up, already dressed and almost ready to go. Troy smiled as she recounted a dream she had in which they had a dance party, and subsequently decided they should do just that, especially because she wanted to find out if Abed would be as good at tangoing as he was in her dream (he promised that he would be). 

They were just about to finish their breakfast when Annie told them to hurry again, then went back to her room to check she had everything she needed in her backpack. Troy collected their empty bowls and took them to the sink, where they would have to wait until their return to be cleaned. He almost jumped in surprise when Abed joined him, snaking his arms around his waist and resting his chin on Troy’s shoulder. 

“This is out of character for me,” he pointed out, meta as ever, “but I really like physical contact with you.” 

“Good,” Troy purred, “‘cause I like it, too.” 

He kissed Abed again, and again, and once again found himself unable to stop. There was something about finally being able to kiss Abed whenever he wanted that made doing anything else seem extremely unappealing. 

They sprung apart at the sound of Annie’s bedroom door opening. 

“How are you guys still not ready?” she groaned, heading for the door, “I’ll see you at school.” 

Troy and Abed actually started getting ready once she had left, quickly brushing their teeth, getting dressed and gathering a bunch of school stuff that they deemed good enough for the day.

“Abed,” Troy said as they walked to school hand in hand, and Abed acknowledged him with a quiet hum. 

“Can we not tell anyone yet? I don’t think I’m ready.” 

“That’s okay,” Abed placidly agreed, “we’ll do the secret relationship trope. It will be fun.” 

“So... secret boyfriends?” Troy asked in a small voice. 

“Secret boyfriends.” Abed confirmed with a smile. 

“Oh,” Troy lit up again, “we can tell Jeff! I kinda told him I was in love with you.” 

His eyes widened as he realized he’d just let slip that he was _in love_ with the man he had _just_ started dating and panic started to overcome him. 

“Cool,” Abed agreed easily, “I’m in love with you, too.” 

The panic in Troy’s stomach settled, replaced by happy, fluttery butterflies instead. 

  


***

  


“Hey,” Troy muttered, grabbing Abed’s hand as everyone else left the classroom and pulling him back in, “hey, hey, hey.” 

He closed the door behind them once the classroom was empty, and drew Abed in for a kiss. 

“I can’t believe I get to do this now,” he mumbled against Abed’s lips, “how does it feel so natural?” 

He didn’t just mean the kissing, he meant all of it: the kissing, the pet names, the thought of being Abed’s boyfriend. He didn’t specify that, though, knowing his best friend always understood what he meant without need for an explanation. 

“I don’t know,” Abed replied, his hands firmly planted on Troy’s waist, “I was worried a shift from platonic to romantic might complicate or potentially ruin our relationship, that’s why I hadn’t said anything yet. Instead it seems right, like it was destined to be this way.” 

Troy smiled.

“Do you believe in soulmates?” he asked, gently caressing the nape of Abed’s neck.

“I do now,” Abed mumbled, leaning in for another kiss. 

Troy sighed happily into it, tilting his head _just so_ to deepen it, gently pushed Abed to sit on a desk, settling easily between his legs. 

“Oh, woah.” 

They pulled apart abruptly, turning to the doorframe where Jeff was now standing. He smiled smugly as he closed the door behind him and walked towards the two men, who were now standing side by side. 

“Forgot my book,” he explained, grabbing it from a nearby desk, “were you guys… making out?” 

Troy flushed. Abed replied with a simple _yep_. 

“We’re kind of… dating,” Troy managed to get out, “but it’s a secret, so please don’t tell anyone.” 

Abed nodded, pointing his finger at Troy, then at Jeff. 

“I won’t,” he assured them, “but maybe don’t make out in the middle of the school.” 

“It was supposed to be empty!” Troy defensively exclaimed, “you try not kissing Abed for a whole school day.” 

“I do that everyday,” Jeff dead-panned, “and it comes quite easy to me. But fine, I’ll keep your secret.” 

He shrugged and turned to leave, but stopped and turned back to them.

“When you do decide to come out to everyone,” he said, his voice warm and reassuring, “I’ve got your back. As a friend and as a fellow bisexual.” 

“Cool,” Abed nodded, “I’m bi, too.” 

He raised his hand for a high five, and Jeff rolled his eyes as he complied. 

“I’m gay,” Troy said, shocked at how easy and liberating the words felt after a lifetime of fighting it, “especially for Abed.”

Abed smiled; Jeff rolled his eyes again, but didn’t hide his own smile. 

“Alright, dorks. I’ll see you in study group.”

  


***

  


“Break!” Jeff announced after a somewhat productive hour of studying had passed, and immediately picked up his phone, typing away. 

“What’s everyone doing tonight?” Shirley asked in a flowery voice, looking around the table, “Andre is taking me to a nice restaurant!” 

“I’m going to watch this groundbreaking new documentary,” Britta animatedly answered, “it’s about nonbinary people making their own notebooks. Or writing in their notebooks about being nonbinary. Either way, it’s groundbreaking.” 

“There was a nonbinary constable in season fifteen of _Inspector Spacetime_ ,” Abed commented, “they were cool.” 

Troy nodded in agreement, and Britta smiled ecstatically. 

“You wanna watch it with me, Annie?” she asked then. 

“Sure,” Annie replied with a shy smile, and Jeff momentarily looked up from his phone to raise an eyebrow at her. 

“Great,” Britta said with a timid smile of her own, “we can drive home together and get thai food on the way. There’s this _great_ place…” 

Troy tuned her out as he leaned towards Abed to whisper in his ear, hopefully unnoticed. 

“Wanna go on our first date?” 

“Cool,” Abed whispered back, grinning, “cool, cool, cool.”

  


***

  


A few hours later, everything was ready for Troy and Abed’s perfect first date, a title they had sung many times while preparing everything. 

Troy had made buttered noodles and set the table, dimmed the lights and strategically placed some candles. He had plugged his iPod in the speakers, his perfect romantic playlist for Abed ready to play (it had more songs from the _Inspector Spacetime Valentine’s Day Musical Special_ than he would have admitted to anyone else). Abed had been in charge of drinks and dessert, which meant he was bound to arrive with those at any moment. 

Troy stood up from his chair when the door opened, revealing a smiley Abed holding a shopping bag and some red roses. 

“I got you flowers,” he said, handing them to Troy, “that’s something you do on dates. Do you like them?” 

Troy felt a blush rise to his cheeks as he held the roses to his chest. 

“I do,” he softly replied, “thanks, Abed.”

“No problem. I also got chocolate cake for dessert and wine. And orange drink.” 

He did a quick finger gun, then set everything on the table. Troy put the roses in their blanket fort, safe from Annie’s prying eyes, then walked back out and started the music. 

“Troy and Abed’s perfect first date!” he and Abed sang in unison, before doing their handshake. 

Dinner was pleasant as ever, not much having changed in their dynamic other than the pet names Troy would throw in here and there, and the fact that he could gaze lovingly at his best friend as much as he wanted, could play with his fingers as he ate his buttered noodles. 

“Good news,” Troy said, looking at his phone once they had finished their dessert and settled on the couch, “Annie’s staying at Britta’s for the night.” 

“Cool,” Abed commented, sounding a little on edge, “cool, cool, cool.” 

“You’ve been saying that a lot, lately,” Troy pointed out. 

“I say it when I’m excited for something,” Abed needlessly explained. 

“Or nervous.” 

Abed didn’t answer, instead looking down at his lap. 

“Are you nervous?” he asked, affection dripping through his voice. 

“A little,” Abed admitted, “I’m not sure I’m good at this. Usually I’d compensate by doing a character, but I don’t wanna do that with you.” 

“I don’t want you to be anyone but yourself,” Troy reassured him, “whatever that means. And if you wanna be Batman or Han Solo sometimes, that’s cool, too. Like, it’s fine with me. I’m chill either way. I’m not mad you made out with Annie as Han and not me.” 

“I get the hint,” Abed replied, raising his finger, “but let’s wait a little for that. I want to get used to us as us, first.” 

Troy grinned and took Abed’s hand in his as he inched closer. 

“That’s what I care about most, anyways,” he muttered, then captured his boyfriend’s lips with his own. 

He sighed contentedly as Abed’s lips parted slightly, allowing him to deepen the kiss; his hands roamed to Abed’s chest, pushing him back gently to recline against the armrest of the couch. Troy couldn’t control a small gasp when Abed’s hands went to his waist, pulling him down on top of himself and kissing him again until they had to break apart, breathless. 

Troy swallowed thickly as he watched Abed’s heaving chest, his head thrown back making his neck look almost unbearably inviting. 

“Can I…?” he asked, his voice coming out strained. 

“Yes,” Abed replied in a low voice Troy had never heard come from him _as Abed_ before. 

Troy marveled at the small moan that escaped Abed’s lips as he kissed the exposed skin of his neck, and silently vowed to dedicate his entire life to provoking that sound again. It didn’t take quite that long, though, as Abed let out a slightly longer, slightly louder moan when Troy kissed the same spot again, daringly open-mouthed this time. Abed tangled his long fingers in Troy’s hair, pulling just enough to tilt his boyfriend’s head up and bring their lips together once again. 

After minutes, maybe hours, had passed and the music had long since died down, they pulled away for good, and sat up, panting. 

“Of course you’re good at this, too,” Troy mumbled once he had caught his breath, and Abed laughed. 

  


***

  


Being in a relationship came surprisingly easy to Troy and Abed. They noticed as much in the following few weeks, as they slowly discovered every facet of their romance. 

Things were pretty much the same as before: lots of handshakes, movie homages, afternoons spent watching TV. Only now their handshakes ended in a small kiss when it was just the two of them (or when Jeff was around, too; they enjoyed being coupley in front of him and hearing the hidden fondness in his voice as he teased them), their movie homages included a lot more romantic scenes, and their TV watching was done cuddled up together on one of their chairs more often than not. 

Troy’s favorite development was probably getting to be on the receiving end of Abed’s touches. Throughout their years of friendship he had noticed his best friend grow more and more comfortable with physical contact with members of the study group, going from avoiding it, to passively accepting it, to enthusiastically returning it. He almost never started it, though, he simply patted Annie’s back when she hugged him, held onto Britta’s hand when she clinged to him in stressful situations, or smiled appreciatively when Jeff encouragingly squeezed his shoulder. Only with Troy had he slowly and surely begun to initiate physical contact. 

At first it had been tentative, as if he was trying some things out, to see what worked and what didn’t, then he seemed to find his rhythm, which was so gentle and tender it made Troy’s heart burst just thinking about it. He mostly did it when they were alone, winding his arms around Troy’s waist, resting his head on his shoulder, pressing delicate kisses on the nearest patch of skin; but he did it around others sometimes, too, intertwining his fingers with Troy’s under the study room table, sitting so close on the couch that their sides pressed together, sending shivers up Troy’s spine every time. 

He loved the way Abed’s touches sent sparks flying through his body, loved the way his boyfriend had taken to physical affection, not only welcoming the way Troy naturally clung to him, but seeking it out himself. 

Abed’s favorite part, on the other hand, had to be the pet names Troy had started to sprinkle into every conversation when the two of them were alone. 

His whole life, he couldn’t remember having nicknames, other than the mean names some schoolmates had called him, but he didn’t think those should count. Otherwise, people just called him Abed, and he was okay with that. Then, Troy arrived, and he took to affectionately calling him _man, dude, buddy_ , and now that they were dating _babe, honey, sweetie_ , when he was feeling particularly fancy even _my love_ ; he even said Abed’s name with so much love that it sounded sweeter than every pet name combined. 

It felt incredible, being the one Troy directed all that love to, being the person he let down his guard with, allowed his sensitive, tender side to submerge. 

Something else he loved was how easily he could render his best friend a speechless, flustered mess; he found it mesmerising. A kiss, a touch, a flirty joke could be enough to break Troy into a thousand lovestruck pieces. 

“You look really good today, babe,” he had whispered in Troy’s ear once during study group, trying out the pet name for the first time, and Troy hadn’t been able to get a word out the whole study session.

“Your constant comments on how much you like butt stuff were great foreshadowing,” he had casually commented after they had sex for the first time, causing Troy’s cheeks to heat up more than he had thought humanly possible. 

And, well, it’s easy to imagine what Troy’s reaction was when Abed finally kissed him as Han solo. 

Keeping their relationship a secret was easy; there had been a couple close calls at home with Annie, but they had managed not to be found out. Jeff had also been surprisingly helpful, covering for them a couple of times and even going so far as lending Troy his car to take Abed on a stargazing date after they had watched one too many romantic movies that had made them seem incredibly appealing. (They had ended up discussing _Star Wars_ and playing Inspector Spacetime beneath the night sky, which felt perfectly right for them.)

They would eventually tell everyone, but they both liked having their relationship be only theirs for a while, and Troy in particular wasn’t looking forward to dealing with coming out. He had spent his whole life trying to repress that part of himself and now he had a boyfriend, and he was happier than he ever had been, but he was also worried that would end once everybody found out, once his family found out, and everyone started to look at him differently. 

It hit him sometimes, just how much things could change, simply because he loved a man; how his family would probably reject him, how he might lose his friends. Abed held him tight as the fear of being his true self overcame him, promising that he wasn’t broken, wasn’t wrong, and that he would always be by his side. He even had one of those moments around Jeff, who hugged Troy and offered to be his emotionally distant father figure.

For now, though, their love remained a secret to everyone but them and Jeff, and they enjoyed trying out the different secret relationship tropes, stealing kisses between classes, while Annie was in another room, waking up early enough that she wouldn’t walk in and find them sleeping in the same bed. They enjoyed the way Jeff smiled smugly and raised an eyebrow at them when he noticed their joined hands beneath the table, or when they leaned in to whisper something to each other and he happily attracted everyone’s attention so Troy could brush his lips against Abed’s cheek while the others weren’t looking. 

Maybe it was their unwavering support that made Troy get so comfortable, maybe it was the way everything came so natural with Abed, as if they had been doing this forever and not just a few weeks. Whatever it was, it caused him to lower his guard one day as he walked into the study room, eyes fixed on his phone while he read an article he thought would interest Abed. _Speaking of Abed_ , he looked up when he heard his boyfriend greet him. 

"Hey, babe," he mindlessly replied, and put away his phone as he bent down and pressed a kiss to the top of Abed's head. 

He stood tall again to find the entire study group staring at him, bewildered looks in their eyes, except for Jeff's, who looked as uninterested as usual. 

"What?" he asked, confused. 

He looked at Abed for guidance, and found him staring as well, his eyebrow raised the way they did when an interesting situation was unfolding. 

"You called me babe and kissed my head," Abed recounted. Then, having understood that Troy's brain hadn't caught up yet, he explained further: "in front of all our friends." 

Troy's mouth opened in a gasp of realization. 

"Yep," Abed confirmed. 

"That was, uh-" Troy looked around the room at his friends, scrambling for an excuse, "-we were doing a movie." He waved his hand in Abed's direction. "Abed's studying rom-coms." 

"Abed hasn't been in character all day," Annie interjected unhelpfully. 

Troy looked for reassurance in Abed's eyes, panicking, but found the same fears reflected in them, the gravity of the situation having become clear in his best friend's mind. 

No one else spoke as Troy and Abed continued staring at each other, as if hoping for a telepathic communication to start. 

Jeff finally looked up from his phone after a while, and at them. He set the device down on the table and reassuringly addressed the not-so-secret-anymore couple . 

"Guys, it's okay," he looked at everyone else, shooting them a commanding look, then back at Troy and Abed, "you can tell us." 

Abed looked at Troy, a question in his eyes, and Troy replied with a small nod as he shakily grabbed his hand. Abed turned away from him then and towards the others, his eyes darting between Jeff and Annie. 

"Troy and I have been secretly dating for the last five weeks." 

Troy winced inwardly as he saw Shirley do a sign of the cross from the corner of his eye, and his grip on Abed's hand instinctively tightened. 

"Guys! That's _so cool_!" 

Troy heard Britta continue to talk excitedly, but he tuned her out. He hadn't been ready for this, for all that not being a secret anymore entailed, not yet. Abed stood up and interlaced his fingers with Troy's, keeping him from spiraling further. 

"We'll be right back," he told the others, and led Troy out of the room, and to a secluded spot in the library. 

"Troy." He put both hands on his shoulders and started rubbing soothing circles with his thumbs. "Look at me." 

Troy did, as tears streamed from his eyes. 

"It's okay," Abed reassured him, "they're not going to care. Well, Shirley and Pierce might, but we can deal with that. The rest of them are on our side." 

"I'm not ready," Troy said in between sobs, "I only feel right when I'm with you, Abed. With everyone else, I still- I can't be… I feel wrong." 

"There's nothing wrong with you." 

They both turned at the sound of Annie's voice. Abed let go of Troy's shoulders, opening the both of them up to her, but swiftly took Troy's hand in his. 

"I'm sorry I followed you." Annie walked up to them, a concerned, apologetic look in her eyes. "I just can't have you think I'm anything other than happy for you for another second." 

She looked meaningfully at Troy, and he almost believed her. 

"I actually-" she sighed "-I saw you kiss, a while ago. I didn't say anything because I wanted you to tell me on your own time but guys- _Troy_ \- all I could think was how _right_ it was." 

Abed gave her a small smile and took one of her hands in his. 

"Thank you, Annie." 

She nodded, a sweet smile on her lips, and squeezed his hand, then focused her gaze entirely on Troy. 

“I love you, Troy. We all do.” 

“You saw how Shirley reacted,” he retorted, looking at Abed more than at Annie, not yet able to meet her eyes, “I can’t do this.” 

Abed dropped his hand, a dejected look in his eyes. 

“You don’t wanna be with me anymore?” he asked, breaking Troy’s heart with the smallness of his voice, the distressed acceptance pouring from it. 

“No.” He shook his head, tears falling freely from his eyes, and grabbed Abed’s hand again. “Abed, it’s all I want. I just don’t- I don’t want to lose everything else because I’m so impossibly in love with you. I don’t want everyone to tell me the best thing in my life is wrong.” 

“It’s not,” Annie cut in once again, “and you won’t lose everything. You have me, Jeff, Britta… And Shirley will come around, I promise.”

“Yeah,” Jeff’s voice came from the doorway, where he was leaning in that cool way of his, “and if you ask _me_ , we can totally kick Pierce out. I don’t know why we keep a racist, homophobic jerk in the group anyways.” 

“You’re right,” Troy laughed between tears, “doesn’t make a lot of sense.” 

Abed laughed, a little forced, but enough to let Troy know they would be okay. He further proved the point by throwing his arms around Troy, and whispering as much in his ear. Annie squeezed herself between them, and they opened their arms towards Jeff, who rolled his eyes but joined in the group hug, as did Britta when she finally arrived, lightheartedly complaining about how everyone had left during her speech. 

“Oh, right,” Jeff said as they all pulled apart after a while, “I’m also bi.” 

  


***

  


That night, Annie offered to do the dishes and clean up by herself, since they’d had a tough day, so Troy was happy to lay in Abed’s arms on the couch, head nestled on his boyfriend’s chest, listening to his heartbeat, finally feeling tranquil and safe. 

“Are you sad?” Abed asked, his voice vibrating through his ribcage. 

“Why?” Troy mumbled, his fingers slowly tracing circles on Abed’s arm. 

“Because of us. Because you fell in love with me, and that makes things harder for you.” 

“Things were always going to be harder for me,” Troy answered sadly, “I was either gonna have to accept my sexuality or repress it forever. Being in love with you makes it easier. It makes the hard part worth it.” 

Abed didn’t reply, but Troy heard him sigh, hopefully in relief. 

“Being in love with you is awesome,” he pressed on, “you’re magical, and beautiful, and wonderful, and you make everything a thousand times better. I’m _happy_ because of us.” 

He tilted his head up and pressed a kiss to Abed’s neck- it was at a weird angle, but he hoped it delivered the message. Abed’s arms tightened around him, and he hummed, seemingly satisfied. 

“I’m happy, too.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! I hope you liked this, if you did, please leave a comment/kudos.


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